Newest New Orleans streetcar line to debut

New Orleans plans to formally open its new 1.5-mile Loyola Avenue streetcar line on Monday, Jan. 28, seven days before the Baltimore Ravens face off against the San Francisco 49ers in the Big Easy during Super Bowl XLVII Feb. 3.

"We've been doing test runs for weeks now, and everything is looking good," a spokesman for the New Orleans Regional Transit Authority said.

The line runs along its namesake avenue from Canal Street Union Passenger Terminal, served by Amtrak and local buses, with connections available to the city's other streetcar lines.

The project cost $52 million, about $7 million over budget due to unexpected construction obstacles, including historical artifacts, RTA said.